The Grand Duchy of Anatoray
The Grand Duchy of Anatoray is ordered by His Majesty, the Grand Duke Michael Andrews. This country allows the elite of the citizenship to elect a leader from among their own ranks. The people of Anatoray are so technologically advanced that each citizen does not physically go to work, but simply thinks of his/her office space and it materializes in whatever physical space they currently occupy. Health care is available to each citizen by right of birth and all health care officials are paid incentives for keeping citizens healthy. Crime is virtually unheard of in Anatoray as policing forces are given the right to take any means necessary to publicly reprimand criminals. This country is very well protected by a military force of highly specialized individuals working through a highly bureaucratic system. Private observance of a religion is tolerated, but no public displays are permitted. In Anatoray, learning is held to the highest of virtues and any citizen may take free classes to further their education. The citizens of Anatoray are so environmentally conscious they live entirely on the three day old droppings of vegetarian animals. The work day has been extended to 24 hours, given that sleep is a commodity which only the wealthy can afford, and any freedom which a citizen understands should be available to them is made available once it is forwarded to all known acquaintances and posted in their front lawn for the public to review. History The Founding of Anatory The Grand Duchy of Anatory is an inland nation, born from the ashes of the Araba Empire, a nation that stretched the continent, but when King Tolsimir IX died in a coup d'état, the Royal wolf-blood of the Tolsimir line was ended. Without an heir to ascend the throne, many lords attempted to claim the title of Emperor, and infighting inevitably engulfed the nation (called the 4 Years War). Many vassal states of the Mighty Araba, like the Duchy of Anatory, abandoned the empire, and within a few, bloody years, the old empire was no more. The Grand Duchy of Anatoray profited greatly under the fealty of the Mighty Araba. Great leaps in technology and culture, brought on by the integrated knowledge of many nations, pulled the nation into the modern era. However, the collapse of the empire and subsequent wars left Anatory in a terrible state of things in terms of economy and politica stability, and by the time the Duchy declared its independence, the aristocracy was essentially starting the nation from scratch. The Land of Anatoray Anatoray only covers about an area of 22,190 sq mi (Larger than Switzerland but smaller than the Czech Republic). This was the land allotted to the Duke of Rabanastre under the Araba Empire, which spanned the length of the Bhujerba area, a kind of subcontinent that lay to the north of the southern mountains. The Royal city of Rabanastre, the capital and seat of power, holds nearly a third of the nation’s population, and is the model of the modern era. The Westerkerk, once a church before even the founding of Anatoray and then expanded and made into a castle, is now the capitol building and home of the Grand Duke, and is in stark architectural contrast to the rest of the city; towering spires, ancient frescos, flying buttresses, and echoing halls makes this landmark as one of the most majestic areas in the city. However, as the city expanded and evolved, the Westerkerk remained relatively the same and unspoiled, and is now dwarfed by the city it used to tower over. Where the Westerkerk represents the fortitude and tenacity of the past, the Rabanastre Above-Ground Railway (RAR), an architectural and technological achievement the monarchy is very proud of, represents the future’s promise and the nation’s advancement. The south and southwest boarders are covered by mountainous terrain, where no cities can be found. However, Pockets of civilization, facilitating large mining efforts, are scattered about the place. The native people of the Bhujerba region, the ones who resisted the conquest of the old empire 350 years ago, migrated from over these mountains hundreds of years before then, and are one of a multitude of ethnicities that can be found in Anatoray. The central and northwestern regions of Anatoray are dry and are poor for agriculture, but nearly a forth of the nation’s population call these plains home; ranchers, shepherds, and potato farmers with their families. These frontiersmen have lived on these plains for generations, and have been largely unaffected by the politics between nations. Those who do not follow their father’s trade move north to the big cities, or enlist in the navy. Across the western boarder lay the lands of Disith, Anatoray’s arch rival. Massive lakes make up the North and Northeast coast. This region is far more lush and populated than the south is. This area was once covered by a temperate deciduous forest, but after modernization, developers and contractors bought up all the acreage, and now this land is covered by suburbs, mega malls, and hotel chains. Many large cities speckle the coast line, including the Capital, Rabanastre. Across these lakes are the forests and coasts known as Macalania. Technologies Anatoray is a modern nation in thought and application, don’t be mistaken, but the nation is firmly caught in the Victorian era. Most forms of technologies are steam powered; from the traditional locomotive, to simple appliances. Despite the limitations inherent in these technologies, Anatoray has adopted many advanced technologies, such as computers, from other, more advance nations. It is only the corporations and the government who have advanced technologies, who need them to efficiently communicate with the rest of nations. As implied previously, the primary means of communication and news is via telegraph, as well as mail services, newspapers, and radios. All of these services are provided by the state. Citizens can have access to the internet and television, but there is very little support for them, and so can be very costly. The military is, like most of the nation, completely steam punk. Battleship sized airships act much the same as they would in the water, except with the added capabilities of hovering high above, which allows certain tactical advantages against grounded opponents. Airships are outfitted and manned as any other ship would be. There are a variety of steam powered rifles available to the Anatorian navy: heavy rifles, which are essentially held cannons, must be attached to massive boilers to deliver the punch necessary to inflict structural damage to any enemy vessel. Because of this handicap, cannons are only used as stationary, defensive turrets, or on the firing decks of battleships. Anatorian scientists have developed and outfitted the navy infantry with light arms that do not need massive boilers to provide their propellant, but are significantly weaker than the heavy rifles, but they suffice to serves as anti-personnel firearms. Sports Tennis There are four major tournaments/championships hosted in Bhujerba: the Anatoray Biannual Open is a state sponsored event that only occurs every other year. It is played at Jamison Parks in Rabanastre, on Hard court. The Victor Hamel Open was named for one of Bhujerba’s early great tennis players. This relatively young tournament is held in Dalanar, the capital of Anatoray’s neighbor and rival, Disith, on Clay court. The Major at Rabanastre is, obviously, held in Rabanastre, also in Jamison Parks on Hard courts, but is much less stately than the Anatoray Biannual Open. The last major is The Bhujerba Championship, the oldest tournament and most beloved. It is played on Grass, across the lakes in Macalania. Tennis is a very popular sport in Anatoray. In the past decade, one man has become a living legend: Joe Kramer. Over his 9 year Career, he has won dozens of tournaments, and, amazingly, 9 Majors. His first Championship came in the 2002 Victor Hamel Open at the fresh age of 20, where he swept the defending champion in straight sets to claim victory. He proved his 2002 win was not merely beginners luck when he continued to rule the courts for the next several years, placing high in most championships. However, as the first decade of the 21st century wrapped up, Kramer's performance waned, making way for a new champion. Carl Rookwood has become a force to be reckoned with in recent years. In his short career thus far of merely 4 years, he has already won five majors, setting up to overtake Kramer's record of 9. The then 19 year old came crashing onto the scene when, as a relatively unknown rooky, went five sets in the Anatoray Biannual Open against Kramer in 2007, and then winning the championship two years later, and 4 other majors in between. Rookwood has upset Kramer's attempt to retain his titles, but will 2011 be his chance for a never before seen comeback, or will Rookwood become a name that will last the ages? Rabanastre News Station: 9/18/2010 A rally outside the Westerkerk protesting the Medical Sales Tax, the latest in a series of tax hypes that have befallen the Duchy over the past few months, have continued for their fifth day in a row today. Under the new tax, the price of over-the-counter prescriptions as well as generic brand drugs have raised by nearly 66%, further isolating the poor from the wealthy class, and angering many middle class homes as they are forced to dip into their savings to afford their daily necessities. In other news, a terror attack was thwarted yesterday evening when a man with gun attempting to hijack the Rabanastre Above-Ground Railway (RAR) was apprehended when his weapon jammed and security officers tackled him. No one was harmed. The terrorist, Robert (Bob) Frederick, is a political extremist and prominent member of the Coalition of Democratic Supporters (CDS), and has organized rallies against the monarchy for some years, but had never shown to be violent. The incident has motivated the state to install more sophisticated but expensive and time consuming security checking machines at the busiest railway terminals, which will slow transportation efforts across the city. The Aristocracy has also begun discussing raising the Rail Tax to pay for the new security measures, but some fear that anymore tax hypes will push more of the public to support of the CDS, but many argue that the new security measures, meant to protect against radicals from CDS, is worth the price. 9/28/2010 After nearly a week and a half of political filibuster, the bill to raise the rail tax has passed. The tax will help fund security measures to prevent another terror attack similar to the attempted hijacking of last week. Members of the Aristocracy opposed to the continued “oppression” of the working class protested by walking out of court. These members included the popular political figure Charles Howard III, a lifelong advocate for the people and well loved. His protest against the Aristocracy majority, and the Grand Duke, has stirred the monarchy to be even more vigilant against antimonarchical groups, not the least of which being the Coalition of Democratic Supporters (CDS). 10/08/2010 Charles Howard III, one of the members of the Aristocracy who walked out of the court in protest of the new Rail tax, returned to the capital today under a new banner. For weeks Howard III and several other disgruntled Aristocrats had been going from city to city, rallying supporters for a true voice of the people within the Aristocracy. Howard III appeared at the Westerkerk with nearly 1,250 supporters behind him, and proceeded to propose drastic reforms that would relieve the working class. The Aristocracy has been under heavy deliberation. Many believe that, if the reforms are denied, civil war will break out and Anatoray would take decades to recover. However, many others argue that the taxes are necessary, that it is the taxes that allow the citizens of Anatoray to enjoy the ample freedoms available to them. Controversy regarding the CDS has also been arisen; many of the reforms Charles Howard III is proposing are in fact supportive of demands made by CDS terrorists over the past year. Rumors suggest that Howard III himself is a member of CDS; the Aristocrat denies it though, denouncing the coalition as a “violent group of anarchists.” 11/02/2010 Disaster! A bomber has killed 4 people and wounded dozens more at the intersection of 3rd and 13th. The terrorist attempted escape but was halted by witnesses then taken into custody. Many blame the recent cut of protective services. Over the past month, many reforms have been passed due to the efforts of “man of the people” Charles Howard III, where he advocated the lifting of many taxes and some of the more obscure ones to be altogether done away with. Charles Howard III was found, after an intense investigation, not to have had any definitive ties to the CDS and nothing to do with the bombing. However, Howard III stepped down from his duties in light of this tragedy. In other news, the Royal Symphonic Orchestra is on the road again, participating in the CRB International Music Festival, hosted by the Constitutional Monarchy of Chosun. This is the second début of the orchestra, where they first appeared at the CRB capital in concert. 11/25/2010 News of the forcible takeover of Elcon by the anti-monarchists as sparked great turmoil in Anatoray; the Aristocracy and the Grand Duke has condemned the terrorists and hopes the sovereign will win back his throne swiftly. However, many of Anatoray’s political radicals, including ex-Aristocrat Charles Howard III, support the creation of the Republic in Elcon, and have cried out to the people that this is proof that a monarchy is not untouchable, and can be overthrown. The people, on the other hand, do not condone the use of violence in any political endeavor, and so do not support the rebels, or are apathetic to the whole situation. In other news, Grand Duke Michael Andrews recognizes the American holiday of Thanksgiving. 03/10/2011 Recently, Anatorian fishing vessels off the coast of the northern lakes have been disappearing. Authorities suspect pirates in the area are either hijacking the vessels, or, more likely, raiding and sinking them. However, if the vessels are being hijacked, there have been no ransoms demanded by the hijackers. Also, no Anatorian radio has picked up a mayday or any other transmission that would have been broadcast if the vessels were attacked. Nor has any evidence supporting the theory that the sailors are being attacked have been found; no debris, nor the pirates themselves, can be discovered. In other news, the department of Science and Technology continue to search for more efficient modes of transportation between Nirn and other planets within the galaxy, as well as to the Jaguar Galaxy. The support from Anatorian allies, namely Rothenfels and Pyravar, has contributed to great advancements in Anatoray’s space program, and more experimental launches are scheduled for the near future. Category:Faction nations